Remove OneDrive from Windows 11 Explorer and Free Up Space

Removing OneDrive from Windows 11 Explorer can be a straightforward process, but it requires some technical know-how.

To start, you can disable OneDrive through the Settings app. This will stop OneDrive from syncing files and consuming space on your device.

By disabling OneDrive, you can free up space on your device, which is especially useful if you're running low on storage. In fact, disabling OneDrive can reclaim up to 10 GB of space on your device.

Disabling OneDrive will also prevent it from cluttering your Windows 11 Explorer with unnecessary folders and files. This can make it easier to navigate your files and find what you need.

Removing the OneDrive icon from File Explorer in Windows 11 is a straightforward process that requires a few tweaks in the Registry editor.

To get started, open the Registry editor by pressing Win + R and typing regedit into the Run box.

Navigate to the key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\CLSID\{018D5C66-4533-4307-9B53-224DE2ED1FE6} by copying and pasting it into the address bar of the Registry editor.

Double-click the System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree DWORD value and change its value data from 1 to 0.

Now, navigate to the key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace and delete the {018D5C66-4533-4307-9B53-224DE2ED1FE6} entry.

Close all Explorer windows to apply the change, and the OneDrive icon will no longer appear in the navigation pane on the left.

You can undo this change at any time by changing the System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree value back to 1, recreating the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\{018D5C66-4533-4307-9B53-224DE2ED1FE6} key, and re-opening File Explorer.

You can remove the OneDrive icon from File Explorer by modifying the Registry.

To do this, open the Registry editor by pressing Win + R and typing regedit into the Run box. Then, navigate to the key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Classes\CLSID\{018D5C66-4533-4307-9B53-224DE2ED1FE6}.

Double-click the System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree DWORD value and change its value data from 1 to 0. This will remove the OneDrive icon from the navigation pane.

You can also delete the {018D5C66-4533-4307-9B53-224DE2ED1FE6} entry in the key HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace to achieve the same result.

To undo the change, simply change the System.IsPinnedToNameSpaceTree value from 0 back to 1, and recreate the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Desktop\NameSpace\{018D5C66-4533-4307-9B53-224DE2ED1FE6} key.

Alternatively, you can use the Registry editor to navigate to the key HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{018D5C66-4533-4307-9B53-224DE2ED1FE6} and modify the System.IsPinnedToNamespaceTree DWORD value from 1 to 0.

Here are the steps to remove OneDrive from File Explorer modifying Registry:

Removing OneDrive from Windows 11 Explorer can also affect the taskbar. The OneDrive icon disappears from the system tray on the taskbar.

You can expect to see a change in the way File Explorer looks and behaves. The OneDrive section is no longer visible on the left side of File Explorer.

If you're used to seeing the OneDrive section, it can be jarring to see it go missing. But don't worry, you can still access your files and folders.

The Gallery section in File Explorer only displays pictures stored locally on your computer. It no longer shows pictures stored in OneDrive.

This change can be a bit confusing at first, but it's easy to get used to.